10,000 York Homes Could Lose Freeview in 4G Tests

Around 10,000 homes in an area west of York city centre could have problems with their Freeview service as tests are carried out on the new 4G mobile service.

The York test will allow at800, who are the company behind the tests, to examine where interference may occur.

The predictions are based on several factors including the strength of TV signals and the frequency separation between 4G at 800 MHz and local digital terrestrial television services. The test will also help shape the approach for the elderly and those with a disability.

Potentially affected households are being informed this week in a postcard, around a week before the masts which could affect their Freeview service are activated. In most cases, a free filter, available from at800 – connected between the TV aerial and the television, Freeview box or signal booster – will solve any issues by blocking 4G signals at 800 MHz. A team of professional aerial installers and testing units will be in the area to respond to calls from viewers.

Simon Beresford-Wylie, chief executive of at800, said, “The testing in York will help us further refine our approach, alongside the tests we’ve conducted and which continue in Brighton. We urge those viewers in York who receive a postcard, and who see new problems with their Freeview reception, to call us.”

If viewers have not been contacted directly through the post by at800, problems with their Freeview service are unlikely to be due to 4G at 800 MHz. Television received via a cable or satellite is not expected to be affected. Only new 4G services at 800 MHz could cause problems with Freeview; existing 4G services from EE operate at 1800 MHz and do not disrupt television reception.